In 1990-something, everyone was doing Billy Blanks Tae-Bo and was calling Jenny Craig for diet advice. Rewind a few more years to the mid-'80s and it was all about Jane Fonda and the grapefruit diet. (Rumor has it, there was even a global shortage of neon leopard print leotards in 1986!) Today, people won't stop going on about Crossfit, P90X and Paleo (you know the ones...).

Regardless of the decade, there's always been a half-dozen quick fix solutions that help you shed weight fast and achieve your goals with minimal efforts. But what does any of this have to do with real estate?

Many of the same things that deter us from successfully incorporating a healthy, balanced diet and consistent exercise into our daily lives can also sabotage your real estate career. Here's some food for thought...

Avoid These 5 Self-Sabotaging Behaviors:

Neglecting to plan ahead:

Let's face it - your schedule is totally chaotic, especially in the busy summer months. Some days, it's so crazy you're lucky if you can squeeze in a proper meal. If you don't set aside specific days and times to fit in your real estate marketing tasks in, the likelihood of not doing them at all is very high.

Just like with your workouts, you can't wing it. Resist the urge to "fit it in" - make a point to set aside specific days and times to work on your business marketing. Treating your marketing responsibilities with the same level of priority as a client meeting will help you keep the ball rolling.

Forgetting to balance your efforts:

If you exercise like crazy but exclusively eat chocolate cake, your results are not going to be what you had in mind. On the contrary, if you decide exercise just isn't for you but you eat only lettuce, you're going to lack a lot of important nutrients and will find yourself thin but unhealthy.

To be successful, you need to focus on working hard but balancing your work with your life. Working too hard can make you rich but can cost you big on relationships and other fulfilling interactions. On the contrary, working too little can leave you in the lurch when it comes to paying bills. You have to find a balance that allows you to achieve your goals without sacrificing everything else.

Setting goals that are too big or not big enough:

If you decide that you're going to run a marathon your first day getting into regular exercise, you'll quickly realize that your goal was a little delusional. On the contrary, if you challenge yourself to do a single sit-up and you over-achieve by doing two, your not doing yourself any favors either.

For best results, set SMART goals that are reasonable, measurable and deadline driven.

Seeking the "magic bullet" solution:

Diet pills that promise you can shed weight fast with no diet or exercise are terrifying and you should never take them - because science says that's not possible unless those drugs are doing some crazy stuff to your insides. Same goes with real estate success - there is no way you can do nothing and be successful - it's just not gonna happen.

Instead - stick with tried and true processes proven to work time and time again, like a balanced diet and regular exercise. Put in the discipline, do the work and the results will come - guaranteed!

Over-complicating and over-thinking the process:

With food and exercise, it's simple - consume less than you burn. But people way over complicate the process of dieting by focusing on all sorts of other ancillary things - and the same thing can happen with your business.

Have you ever heard the saying, "There's only one way to eat an elephant - one bite at a time?" It can be super easy to come up with a grandiose plan on what you want to accomplish with your real estate marketing (or your weight loss goals), but you need to break it down into smaller, digestible pieces in order to start tackling it and getting things done. Don't overwhelm yourself right from the get-go, set realistic, progress oriented deadlines and before you know it, you'll find yourself in a great spot. (For the record, I don't recommend actually eating elephants - it's just an analogy).

One last thing... you need a strong support system:

Research has proven over and over again that if you establish a group of workout buddies or check in with friends on a daily basis, your likelihood of accomplishing your weight loss goals is much higher. Same goes for your career. Real estate is an extremely demanding - so you need a strong support system in place that'll have your back when you're struggling to put one foot in front of the other

The moral of the story is - next time you feel like you can't resist reaching for that slice of chocolate cake, pause and remember that all the little no's are worth it to get to the bigger yes. Just like with diet and exercise, every small sacrifice is well worth the incredible feeling you get from reaching your goals and achieving success.